The feast was fancy but perhaps Hermione was not a fancy girl. She kept looking outside and think of wanting some muggle food. Harry knew that face, maybe that was the perk of knowing her for four years.
"Well Miss Granger, I will sneak us into the kitchen and make you a grilled cheese", he eyes lit up like a child's at the sight of Christmas presents. "However, I must demand a kiss from you."
"Oh Potter, here I thought you were going to make me work for it", she said before placing a small kiss on his cheek and running towards the ceiling high doors of the hall.
He sneaked them in with the help of his invisibility cloak. Dobby showed them the ingredients.
Hermione sat on the slab casually moving her legs around and looking at Harry who put all his focus on the cheese and the bread.
"You're good at this", she said "and looking at your lack of interference I guess cooking is not your strong suit" he replied.
"Well it is not that hard, I am good at potions and food is also just mixing things carefully" she lied through her teeth. She did not want to share her cooking failures.
"You're lying. You have tried cooking before and it most definitely did not go well." He commented with utter confidence.
"How would you know that", she asked. "I know when you lie Mione, dare I say that it is one of the very few things you are not good at."
It felt good knowing that somebody was this familiar to you, knew you to an extend that they had mentally noted all your habits. She felt accepted, euphoric and very much in love.
"Very few things? What are those things", she said in a pretended offence.
"Well, I believe cooking and lying are the only two I could find by now", he finished cutting the sandwich and putting the pieces on a plate. He darted towards the door and simply asked Hermione to follow him.
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They were both sitting in the Quidditch bleachers.
"I don't need your jacket Harry, I am not that cold", said Hermione as she shivered. Her hair that had remained straight were now in a bun showing off her silver beaded earrings. They chimed calmly under the breeze.
"I wanted to make a gesture like those muggle movies", he complained and ruffled his hair. Then he shook his jacket off and draped it over the brunette's bare shoulders.
"You know Mione, I might not say this enough but thank you", he said looking at the clear dark sky in front of him.
"You know the first time we met on the station, I did not think we would be friends. I did not think anybody would want to be friends with me. Now I realise that right here I could not be happier", she said it all without hesitation gazing at the boy beside her.
When he felt the eyes linger on his despite the comfortable silence he glanced back. Brown eyes met the green and none of them knew who initiated the kiss.
Their lips were in sync, there was a sense of familiarity even if they had never kissed before. In the heat of the moment they both stood up and she ran her fingers through the black curls. His hands had snaked around her waist. They were in pure ecstasy, repeating each other's name in their heads over and over again.
After a while, they broke apart for air. She looked back in his eyes.
"I have seen the stars, the moon, lakes and the forests. I see those beautiful things everyday but amongst it all nothing gives me more peace than looking at you. You can ask me for anything and I would break myself trying to give it to you. Ask me for my soul and I'd happily hand it over to you. Those who say that home is a place have no idea about what you are to me." He was surprised by how steady his voice was.
At the present time Harry was unsure of the reaction to expect. He wanted her to stay but thought that she would run.
Much to his happiness, she stayed.
"Oh Harry!", she cupped a side of his face with the hand that was free while the other was still in his hair. "You are my best friend, the person I tell everything to and the only one I want to share this moment with. I know that if anything would hit me, hit us, we will endure it because I will hold your hand through it all and I know that you would too."
They were both gleaming as they leaned in, their foreheads touched. "forever" he mumbled and she muttered the same word.
Hands in hand the couple walked back to their dormitory. The fat singing lady smiled and for the first time in a calm voice said "finally".
Ron and Ginny much to their dismay, had noticed the two lovebirds stroll in the common room. It was hard to not notice. Young Collin with a camera in his hand took a picture of the sight.
None of them slept that night. The other day was as regular as it could be but somehow it felt different. The couch was still there but now the couch was a romantic place where Hermione could cuddle with Harry. Breakfast was the same, but now she noticed all of Harry's favourite foods.
He would drop her to her classes for the rest of the week. Even though the relationship was not official, everybody knew of it.
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"...then I dropped her off to her room", Harry concluded telling the story of that night to James, Sirius, Remus and Draco.
"Oh my god! That is the most beautiful thing I have heard", Sirius was reaching for the tissue paper box. Just when the young boy thought that Padfoot was the only one crying, James demanded his friend pass the box down. He shifted his glance to see his father and Draco sob too.
"At least it did not take you seven years like your father here" Remus pointed out, laughing at the two grown men and one stoic boy who were currently wearing their emotions on their faces. "Beware of Padfoot this summer, he is going to be spying on both of you." Clearly Remus was very aware of his boyfriend's habit of meddling.
"No, I won't! I don't do that Moony", said the raven head briefly lifting his head from the pillow he stuffed his face in.
"Sure you don't mate", James retorted with every word soaked in sarcasm. "The day Lily and I were saying I love you to each, we were staring into each other's eyes and it was a heavenly moment shattered when you yelled at us asking us to kiss."
Sirius starting remembering that day. Everybody in the room laughed.
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To say that darkness overshadowed the Malfoy Manor would be an understatement. Draco was sharing the house with a murderer, with a person who wanted to eradicate all his friends. He had visited them a week ago to help Harry stop whining over the fact that Mione would not be able to join him this Christmas.
"Ah! young Malfoy. I have been expecting your arrival", said the Dark Lord sitting in the living area.
Draco at that moment felt suffocated. He could not go anywhere in his own house without knowing that his fate can change with any step he takes in any direction.
"Yes My lord so I have been told. What can I do for you today?", he was instructed to treat the dark lord since he was a child. "We treat him as others treat their god, we have devoted ourselves to his cause" said his mother every time.
"It is in my knowledge, that you go to Hogwarts. You are in the same year as that Potter. I have a task for you boy. If you can complete it I shall pardon your family for costing my my diary." Voldemort was pacing now, clearly the diary meant a lot to him.
"What would that be my lord?" Draco flinched as the question came from an unknown third presence. He turned around to find Bellatrix Lestrange as the questioner and beside her was his mother, Narcissa Malfoy.
"He must kill Dumbledore" Tom announced.
Draco was in a state of panic. He never liked Dumbledore but the thought of killing him made his heart skip several beats. The vision around him was dizzy and he had a sudden thirst for water. He knew that he would collapse then.
However, he managed to keep his eyes on the ground to hide the fear so clearly present in them. The blonde boy made his way to his room. After a while he took the invisibility cloak he had borrowed from Harry to be able to sneak out of his house. The boy went downstairs.
Hope was all he had. He hoped that his parents would try save him, the parental love must be in there and this is the time it would come out. However he saw his mother, aunt and father bow in front of the black robed man.
"He will complete the task my lord, excuse his disrupt exit." Draco rushed to his room.
He knew that he would not live here. Today was the day his parents could prove that their son meant more to them than just another follower for their god. He meant more than believing in some egg like person. Meant more than just a boy they provided for.
In a small trunk he put all his belongings. The pictures where he was with his two friends, one he had with Pansy. There was another he had with Sirius and underneath that the man had signed Rebelling since '75. He threw in some clothes.
With the cloak we escaped. He would have turned into his animagi but he had luggage to carry.
Next, he found himself knocking on a familiar door.
So I decided to overlap the events of year 5 and 6. Also I am so grateful to all of you for helping me reach 2.5k reads.
Thank you,
Please comment and vote (I would love the feedback)
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